Final Designation of Disadvantaged Communities (May 2022)
After receiving public input at workshops and in written comments, in May 2022, CalEPA released its updated Designation of Disadvantaged Communities for the purpose of SB 535. In this designation, CalEPA formally designated four categories of geographic areas as disadvantaged:
- Census tracts receiving the highest 25 percent of overall scores in CalEnviroScreen 4.0 (1,984 tracts).
- Census tracts lacking overall scores in CalEnviroScreen 4.0 due to data gaps, but receiving the highest 5 percent of CalEnviroScreen 4.0 cumulative pollution burden scores (19 tracts).
- Census tracts identified in the 2017 DAC designation as disadvantaged, regardless of their scores in CalEnviroScreen 4.0 (307 tracts).
- Lands under the control of federally recognized tribes Tribes. For purposes of this designation, a Tribe may establish that a particular area of land is under its control even if not represented as such on CalEPA’s DAC map and therefore should be considered a DAC by requesting a consultation with the CalEPA Deputy Secretary for Environmental Justice, Tribal Affairs and Border Relations at TribalAffairs@calepa.ca.gov.
The funds for the DACs come from California Climate Investments. These are proceeds of the State’s Cap-and-Trade Program in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and appropriated by the Legislature specifically targeted for investment in disadvantaged communities in California. These funds are aimed at improving public health, quality of life, and economic opportunity in California’s most burdened communities while reducing pollution that causes climate change. These funds must be used for programs that further reduce emissions of greenhouse gases.
The designation takes into account the latest and best available data and considers factors related to data unavailability. This designation will go into effect on July 1, 2022, at which point programs funded through California Climate Investments will use the designation in making funding decisions.
Preliminary SB 535 Identification of Disadvantaged Communities (2021)
In October 2021, CalEPA issued a Preliminary Disadvantaged Communities Designation, which can still be found in English & Spanish (PDF)
It was developed based upon several years of community outreach, public workshops and stakeholder feedback, and with support from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA). CalEPA determined that the improvements found in CalEnviroScreen Version 4.0 warranted a reconsideration of designation practices and the eventual issuance of a new designation of disadvantaged communities.
California Climate Investments are administered by state and local agencies for a variety of greenhouse-gas cutting programs, including energy efficiency, public transit, low-carbon transportation and affordable housing. Guidelines written by CARB help these agencies develop programs that meet statutory requirements for reducing emissions while maximizing the benefits to disadvantaged communities.
SB 535 Workshops in 2021
The public was invited to provide feedback by participating in one of two virtual public workshops on the preliminary designation. CalEPA, CARB, and OEHHA staff hosted the following two identical virtual workshops in October 2021. The SB 535 workshops began with a welcome and brief presentation on CalEPA’s proposal and CalEnviroScreen 4.0, and then staff from State agencies convened multiple breakout rooms for participants to provide input and ask questions. Spanish interpretation and translation of the materials were made available.
View the slides from the workshops. (PDF download)
Identification of Disadvantaged Communities (2017)
- SB 535 List of Disadvantaged Communities (Excel, 1.2 MB)
SB 535 Google Earth file: Download Google Earth to view.
- Download the SB 535 KMZ file (KMZ 1.38 MB)
- SB 535 ArcGIS Geodatabase: A zipped file which can be unzipped, then opened using ArcGIS software to view the results. (1.13 MB)